Tuesday 13 March 2012

I Had A Ball!

To be more correct, I went to one. The very first one in the nearly 44 years of my life, that is!

Possibly, one or two of my readers will remember me having mentioned before that RJ has been teaching me ballroom dancing for a while now; from October 15th onwards, there was another long break (4 months) of us not dancing due to many different reasons (having colds and conflicting schedules just being two of them), but we always intended to get back to the Sunday afternoon lessons in my living room and, when possible, the Saturday night dance parties at the nearby dance school.

We took up the lessons again in late January, and I was quite surprised to find how little I had forgotten. In February, we went twice to the Saturday night parties, and it was fun. RJ then invited me to go to a ball with him, and was I well chuffed by the invitation!

Something I needed, though, were better dancing shoes.
For a while now, I had not been very happy with the first pair of dancing shoes I had; when I had first started to practise, a friend of mine had sold me a pair of her dancing shoes for 20 Euros, and that was alright for the beginning. But dancing puts different requirements on a pair of shoes than walking or just standing about decoratively at some event or other; I needed a pair I was firm and stable in, not one that had the heel at the wrong point for me, making me wobbly even without moving.

So, last Friday after work, RJ and I went to the only shop in my town specialising in all things dance: shoes, gowns, the horrid spray-on tan the ladies often use for Latin competitions, false eyelashes, and the likes. We both found that there was really just one pair for each of us that suited us in looks as well as in stability and fit, and RJ gave me that pair as an early birthday present. When I tried them on, it felt as if they had been my shoes from the start; I did not wobble on the heel at all, the straps were the right length, the front was the right width - in short: they were perfect!

Saturday evening, we dressed in our ball outfits (sorry, I can only show you mine; RJ does not want his picture to be shown on here), I put make-up on (a ball certainly classifies as those rare, special occasions for which I do that), and off we went.
All things considered, we had a good night out. I hesitate to say "a great night", because it wasn't utterly great. It was special, and we enjoyed ourselves, but I had never been to a ball before, and it is a very different situation on the dance floor than what I am used to from the Saturday night parties. There, the dance floor is never so full that you can hardly find a spot to start from; at the ball, it was packed, plus it was all highly dynamic, a very fast moving whirl of people, which of course required RJ to lead me very carefully in order to avoid collisions, and I was simply overwhelmed by the extremely quick changes of direction sometimes, especially when it came to those dances (such as Samba and Fox Trot) where I have only just begun to learn the basic steps and am not so settled yet that I can do them without thinking.
Yes, it was quite the challenge, but we did beautifully with the Slow Waltz (also called English Waltz) and the Viennese Waltz, as well as with our Cha Cha Cha and Rumba. So, now I know much better where I want to improve a lot, and also where I already am quite presentable.

The band were alright... not brilliant, but they served the purpose as long as you were not listening to the singer too closely ;-) The show (they had a competition going on for 14 couples from various towns from all over south Germany) was interesting to watch, but it meant we had to sit down quite a lot in between dancing.

I liked looking at the dresses of the other ladies; some were really very beautiful, while others looked as if they couldn't care less and did not consider the ball a special occasion. Like I said, it was a good night out, but next time we go to a ball, we'll choose one without a show, and I want to practise lots more before that :-)

31 comments:

  1. Sounds like fun! Having good dancing shoes is very important. Glad you found a pair that works well for you!

    e

    p.s. again, looking cute!

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    1. Thanks, Elizabeth :-) I am glad that we found those shoes, too!

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  2. Oh dear, it sounds as if it was a bit too crowded but you had fun anyway!
    You looking for dancing shoes reminds me of this...Ginger Rogers did everything that Fred Astaire did, only backwards and with high heels!
    I would have been over the moon watching the couples waltz! Waltzes are my favorite!

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    1. Yes, Kay, we did have fun, and it was good that I made this experience. For my next ball, I shall be better prepared, knowing what to expect - and with some more practise under my belt :-)

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  3. Meike, what a pretty dress!
    Your feet looked well strapped into those shoes, so i assume all went well with your choice there.
    Just like Cinderella, where you home by midnight?
    xx
    julie

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    1. Thanks, Julie! And to think I've had it for years... it was 59 Euro at H&M :-) No, we were home at around 2.00 pm, I think.

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  4. Hello Meike:
    You look absolutely lovely in your dress which we are sure must have been greatly admired. And what a wonderful experience it all seems to have been although, as you say, quite challenging at times with both the pace and variety of the various dances. We too were somewhat surprised to know how packed the dance floor was, but that in itself must have added to the fun and overall atmosphere.

    How very kind of RJ to have given you your new dance shoes as an early Birthday present. A most acceptable gift.

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    1. Hello Jane and Lance, indeed, the shoes easily made it to my list of most cherished presents I ever got; there are few others, such as the caramel-brown leather coat I got 10 years ago from my husband, the digital camera my parents gave us years ago, my coffee machine, and the set of sauce pans and cooking pots my sister gave us when we moved into this flat.

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  5. What a lovely dress and the shoes look perfect. I would have found the ball bewildering but also exciting, assuming I could do the dances.(Actually I have two left feet so I probably wouldn't have been able to do them!)

    almost felt as if I was there with you, though. Quite an exhausting and stimulating experience. I'm surprised that the dance floor was so full. I must say RJ sounds like a very nice kind person.

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    1. Thank you, Jenny! Have you ever tried and were discouraged? RJ had warned me that it would be packed, but I had no idea how much of a difference this would make to me, since I'd never experienced it before.

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  6. Love your dancing shoes! And do I see lipstick to match the color on your dress? I can not see if you are wearing the nail polish. Your dress is lovely and I think that you and JR will have many more dances, balls, and even galas in your future.

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    1. Yes, Jill, the lipstick and the nail polish (which of course I wore) match the dress, and so did RJ's tie (not JR - that's your daughter's boyfriend... :-) ).

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    2. Wow, what a memory! You are right, JR is daughter's and RJ is yours.
      I really like the color, by-the-way.

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  7. You look good in anything Meike :-)

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  8. Sounds like fun, and you look fantastic, Meike!

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    1. Close to blushing over here, Candadian Chickadee, thank you! :-)

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  9. Yet another talent to be admired. One of the things I had decided to do when I came to New Zealand was get dancing lessons because I haven't ballroom danced for over 40 years. My last black tie ball must have been when I was in my very early 20s. Croquet took over and dancing, like Bridge, fell by the wayside. Languages, piano and now dancing: Oh that I were young again and had your talents. Well, in reality perhaps not, but dreams are not about reality are they?

    And, yes, you do look very attractive in that dress.

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    1. Thank you, Graham! I dare say if you knew your steps and moves back then, you'll soon realize you have not truly forgotten them. You just have to try!

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  10. Wow, you look wonderful Glad to know you had a great time. It sounded like a lot of fun.

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  11. oh, das Kleid ist hübsch! (blümchen *-*)
    ich tanze zwar nicht (gut),
    aber ich denke schon teure Schuhe sind wichtig dafür ;)

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    1. Wie so oft - das Kleid ist von H&M, 59 Euro, vor ein paar Jahren :-)
      Teuer müssen die Tanzschuhe nicht sein, aber sie müssen einfach bestimmte Anforderungen erfüllen, und das ist meistens nur bei "echten" Tanzschuhen der Fall, was dann eben auch seinen Preis hat...

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  12. Hello Libby! Wow I envy you! I have always wanted to ballroom dance. I am afraid that it would be a complete disaster becasue my hubby has 2 left feet. I wish that I could just go and even be a wall flower watching from the side. I don't miss the tv show dancing with the stars and it will be starting very soon here! I think in another life I was the bell of the ball! You look beautiful by the way, and I love your shoes. If there is ever an opportunity to take any photos of your ballroom dancing please post! It would be so fun to see.

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    1. Hello Linda! I can so well imagine you being the belle of the ball. And nobody says you only can go dancing with your husband; it is, after all, just dancing. I have friends who go dancing regularly, but because their partners do not really enjoy it, they go on their own and meet their dance partners there.

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  13. You look beautiful! Love the shoes too! Before you know it you'll be ready for "Dancing With The Stars" or DWTS as it's know in the States! Have a wonderful weekend!

    Mary

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    1. Thanks, Mary - I do not aspire to being part of DWTS, however, I am happy to just enjoying myself on the dance floor with RJ for now :-)

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  14. That sounds like so much fun! I love the dress, too. I've never been to a ball and can't imagine dragging my husband to one (he's only danced with my once, to our wedding song!). Still, it sounds divine.

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    1. Thank you, Sonia! Well, it wasn't exactly divine - I am still too much of a beginner for that, really, but I am improving and as long as RJ doesn't give up and still thinks it is worth his time and effort to teach me, I shall learn :-)

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  15. You look wonderful....I love a dress that will twirl and whirl for this kind of dance...Had a lot of trouble trying to comment earlier and don't know if this will work.......

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    1. It did work, thank you! By the way, I wasn't able to comment on your latest blog post at all, I WAS signed in but it kept telling me I needed to be signed in in order to comment...

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